WASHINGTON -- Jake Irvin pitched into the sixth inning for the first time this season, though the frame -- and the game -- would quickly unravel for the Nationals.
Facing the Majors’ second-highest-scoring team and the class of the National League East early this season, the Nats committed several self-inflicted wounds in the sixth, allowing the Braves to turn a one-run deficit into a four-run lead. Atlanta never looked back in the eventual 9-4 series-opening win at Nationals Park.
"We know we have to play really good baseball against this team,” Nationals manager Blake Butera said. “They’re really good. We made too many mistakes tonight to beat this club. We’ll address it and fix it.”
The Nats got to Braves starter Bryce Elder early, with Jacob Young delivering a two-run single in the first and Daylen Lile leading off the fourth with a homer to right for a 3-2 lead.
Irvin was also effective early. The Washington righty, who has battled first-inning demons dating back to last season, needed just 13 pitches in a 1-2-3 first. Irvin ultimately retired the first nine Braves he faced in order, falling behind in the count only once.
“Just stay on the attack,” Irvin said of his approach coming into the game. “Keep pounding the zone. Get ahead of guys. Good things happen when you get ahead. Just give our guys every chance to win.”
Irvin needed just 60 pitches to navigate the first five innings, but the Braves capitalized in the sixth. Mike Yastrzemski reached second to lead off the frame after second baseman Nasim Nuñez booted a grounder before hurrying his throw to first. Irvin faced just one more batter -- hitting Ronald Acuña Jr. for the second time in the game -- before being relieved by lefty PJ Poulin.
With Irvin’s pitch count at just 68 and the opportunity to give his heavily worked relievers an additional breather in the midst of a 17-games-in-17-days stretch, Butera instead turned to his bullpen.
“We made a mistake on defense not catching that ground ball and then Jake hits Acuña,” Butera said, “and with the tying run on second and [Drake] Baldwin and [Matt] Olson staring us in the face, third time through the order, I just thought that was the right time to use PJ with the two lefties there. I thought that was a big spot in the game. It just didn’t work out.”
The inning spiraled quickly. Poulin’s first pitch reached the backstop for a passed ball against Drew Millas as both inherited runners advanced. Baldwin doubled to left on Poulin’s next offering, scoring a pair and giving Atlanta a lead it would not relinquish.
The Braves sent 10 batters to the plate in the sixth against Irvin, Poulin and Brad Lord, scoring five runs on just three hits, one walk and a hit batter. The Nationals also committed two errors and failed to turn a potential inning-ending double play.
The inning could have been even worse for Washington if not for what appeared to be a run-saving snag from 6-foot-6 James Wood, who extended just enough at the right-field fence to haul in a potential home run from Olson.
Irvin ultimately tossed five-plus innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on three hits and two hit-by-pitches to go with four strikeouts.
“I thought Jake threw the ball extremely well outside of the two-run homer to Matt Olson [in the fourth],” Butera said. “Felt really good about him going out there for the sixth.”
Only once this season has a Nationals starter completed six innings (Cade Cavalli on April 1 in Philadelphia). Butera suggested that if the Nats had a larger lead, he would have considered leaving Irvin in.
“I compete until the manager takes the ball,” said Irvin, who completed at least six innings in 16 of his 33 starts last season.
Instead, with a thin margin of error and the left-handed Atlanta sluggers due up, Butera leaned on the matchup.
“Going into the game, we always talk about the right pockets for the relievers that we have,” Butera said. “This lineup is really tough to navigate. That felt like the best spot where PJ matched up against these guys and, obviously, we didn’t want those first two to get on. But with the tying run on base in the sixth, we thought PJ was the right move.”